Black Friday 2008 recap
Posted by psd on November 28, 2008 | No Comments
Didn’t get up at the crack of dawn–or the middle of the night–to wait in line for anything. Nothing seemed that compelling.
Did go out to the Village and to the outlets. The Village was packed. Picked up the obligatory VS wishlist items w/complimentary tote bag, just like the last 3 years. Walked in, then out, of American Eagle. Bought the husband some stuff at Macy’s. Bought the daughter a hoodie at my most-hated store in the mall–Abercrombie & Fitch. Went to the outlets. They were surprisingly mellow, except for Coach which was a zoo. Bought various pajama items at Old Navy. Walked in, then out, of the Gap. Bought holiday foaming hand wash and a couple of Wallflowers at Bath & Body Works. Left.
Decided to go and see Twilight with the daughter, who thinks Edward Cullen is beautiful. Pointed out to each other all the inconsistencies between the book and the movie as they happened. Agreed that the book was better than the movie. Agreed that the movie direction had no ‘flow’. Agreed that the actress cast as Bella really wasn’t as bad as we thought she’d be. Thought the special effects like running and climbing were cheesy, but kind of liked how Edward sparkled in the sunshine. Decided that Stephanie Meyers better get a bigger budget and a better director for New Moon because that book has way more big screen potential than Twilight. Agreed that Robert Pattinson (Edward) was the best thing about the movie.
Went home. Ate leftovers. Shopped online. Typed this. Going to sleep.
Illuminea, with their 5 lead singers, cello and violin kicked off the second set. Somehow their psychedic sound just didn’t seem to fit with the punk rock theme of the show. It seemed like they needed to turn down the volume a little so the crowd could appreciate them more. 
The curtains closed before the next set, bringing the anticipation level up just a little higher for the Gene the Werewolf set. Curtains opened with a twisted carney intro to the band, then went straight into Super Hero, a song off their demo that’s a little bit Kiss and a little bit (the) Darkness and a whole lotta fun. Jon, err, Gene, was dressed to kill in a white suit and black aviator shades. The followed with the other song off their demo, Make Love, before going in to a cover of Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ that got the crowd sufficiently pumped up and in a party mood for headliners Punchline. Diamondcore, indeed.
Now, I had never seen or heard Punchline before this moment, save for their Myspace stuff which was misleading because the first few songs are acoustic. Acoustic is good, but acoustic is not what this band is all about. To quote lead singer Steve Soboslai, “…less talk, more rock.” And rock they did. The dove into their set with the volume cranked to 12 and didn’t let up for a moment. This show is exactly why I missed live music so much–the way the sound from the speakers blows the clothes right off your body. Punchline, now signed to Fueled by Ramen (Fall Out Boy, etc.), are off to Europe with MXPX after the show. 
Wow. It’s been 3 hours now and I have finally re-oriented myself to the point where I feel normal again.
